Racing to Space

During the 1950s and '60s, the United States and the Soviet Union competed for primacy in a global struggle for world influence. This struggle, called the Cold War, motivated the first explorations of space by both countries.

The Museum tells this history in two parts. To learn about the American and Soviet Cold War competition visit our exhibit Space Race. The story of America's effort to master the challenges of an unprecedented journey across thousands of miles of space is told here in Apollo to the Moon.